Now, a web browser is mounted on various equipment, including a personal computer (PC). The web browser can acquire content described in HTML, XML or the like from a web server and display the acquired content in layout based on the format described in the content.
Access to content on a web server is enabled by URL addressing, in which a URL address is specified by directly inputting a URL address with the use of a keyboard or the like, or by registering a URL address as a bookmark in advance and specifying the bookmark.
In addition, the web browser also has functions of storing content on a server in a local storage device and printing out content by means of a printing apparatus.
Such a web browser is not only used on a PC, PDA or the like used by a particular person but also used by an unspecified number of users, on a PC shared by a lot of users, an information terminal installed in a public facility, a copying machine or a printer installed in an office and the like (see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-65853, for example).
In this case, access to pages which can be browsed by a web browser may be restricted for the purpose of inhibiting access to content other than content considered to be required for work, enhancing security, enabling browsing only via an intranet, inhibiting access to paid content, and the like.
Commonly, as a method for page access restrictions, equipment on a network path, such as a proxy and a gateway, may be used to restrict access, or the user management function of the OS on which a web browser is operating is used to place access restrictions.
However, if a page access restriction method as described above is used, setting of the equipment such as a proxy and a gateway is complicated, and all pieces of equipment connecting to a network via the equipment are influenced.
Furthermore, in the case of the access restriction method utilizing the user management function of the OS of a general-purpose PC, a user is required to perform user switching at the OS level every time he uses the PC. In the case of using software-embedded equipment, such as a household electrical appliance and a copying machine, it is impossible to perform such an operation.